Helpful Score: 6
WILLOW is an impressive novel about a difficult subject. The main character, Willow, is extremely well developed, and this book approaches her path to healing in a careful, subtle, yet realistic way. It balances the time spent on Willow's personal healing, her growing relationship with Guy, and her healing relationship with her brother in a matter that's satisfying in the end.
Julia Hoban writes in the third-person limited present tense, which may be a bit jarring at first, but you will quickly lose yourself in the emotional ups and downs of this book. Willow's path to recovery is not easy, and sometimes you'll want to cry the tears that she cannot, as she continues to hurt herself even though there are people caring about her. The ending, however, is hopeful, and ties up all of the major relationship issues satisfactorily.
All in all, WILLOW is a rare accomplishment of poignancy, grief, and the healing power of love. Read it if you want a Sarah Dessen-like story about emotional numbness and the difficult road to healing and feeling again.
Julia Hoban writes in the third-person limited present tense, which may be a bit jarring at first, but you will quickly lose yourself in the emotional ups and downs of this book. Willow's path to recovery is not easy, and sometimes you'll want to cry the tears that she cannot, as she continues to hurt herself even though there are people caring about her. The ending, however, is hopeful, and ties up all of the major relationship issues satisfactorily.
All in all, WILLOW is a rare accomplishment of poignancy, grief, and the healing power of love. Read it if you want a Sarah Dessen-like story about emotional numbness and the difficult road to healing and feeling again.
Helpful Score: 2
Reviewed by Lauren Ashley for TeensReadToo.com
Willow had a learner's permit. Her parents drank too much wine. The storm was bad. After the accident, Willow is left an orphan, living with her brother, David, his wife, Cathy, and their daughter, Isabelle.
Unable to deal with the intense grief, Willow finds her outlet in a razor. This secret tool helps her handle the pain and keep from being overwhelmed by the fact that she believes her brother no longer loves her and her parents will always be gone.
However, a fellow student at her school, Guy, comes to learn her secret. He promises not to tell anyone else, but he can't walk away and believe she'll be fine. Instead, he stays and takes Willow's pain on, trying to understand and working to heal this girl he is beginning to love.
WILLOW by Julia Hoban is an intense read, but it's not suffocating. Willow has her ups and downs, her problems, her fears. She's like every other person in the world, except her pain threatens to consume her whole if she doesn't get help. This book is about more than Willow's past, though. It's about her future and what will come of her newfound friendship with Guy.
Two lives have been interconnected. Willow needs Guy, but Guy needs Willow, as well. They help each other, they open up to each other, they begin to trust and complete each other.
WILLOW deals with painful topics, and can be hard to read at times, but it's also a very powerful story that is sure to resonate with most who pick it up. I would definitely recommend this one.
Willow had a learner's permit. Her parents drank too much wine. The storm was bad. After the accident, Willow is left an orphan, living with her brother, David, his wife, Cathy, and their daughter, Isabelle.
Unable to deal with the intense grief, Willow finds her outlet in a razor. This secret tool helps her handle the pain and keep from being overwhelmed by the fact that she believes her brother no longer loves her and her parents will always be gone.
However, a fellow student at her school, Guy, comes to learn her secret. He promises not to tell anyone else, but he can't walk away and believe she'll be fine. Instead, he stays and takes Willow's pain on, trying to understand and working to heal this girl he is beginning to love.
WILLOW by Julia Hoban is an intense read, but it's not suffocating. Willow has her ups and downs, her problems, her fears. She's like every other person in the world, except her pain threatens to consume her whole if she doesn't get help. This book is about more than Willow's past, though. It's about her future and what will come of her newfound friendship with Guy.
Two lives have been interconnected. Willow needs Guy, but Guy needs Willow, as well. They help each other, they open up to each other, they begin to trust and complete each other.
WILLOW deals with painful topics, and can be hard to read at times, but it's also a very powerful story that is sure to resonate with most who pick it up. I would definitely recommend this one.
Oh wow, this book is amazing.
Willow drives her parents home from a party one night, they give her the keys becasue they both had too much to drink.
As she drives them home something goes horribly wrong, a terrible storm, lashing rain and hellatious lightning.
The car strikes a oak tree and both of the parents are killed.
Willow is stunned with grief. She must live with her older brother and wife, and go to a new school.
How she copes with her post traumatic stress, is cut herself. If she can cut, she gets a release.
She meets Guy, a strong shy young man, who feels a drawing to withdrawn Willow.
What happens next is magical and heartbreaking.
Willow drives her parents home from a party one night, they give her the keys becasue they both had too much to drink.
As she drives them home something goes horribly wrong, a terrible storm, lashing rain and hellatious lightning.
The car strikes a oak tree and both of the parents are killed.
Willow is stunned with grief. She must live with her older brother and wife, and go to a new school.
How she copes with her post traumatic stress, is cut herself. If she can cut, she gets a release.
She meets Guy, a strong shy young man, who feels a drawing to withdrawn Willow.
What happens next is magical and heartbreaking.
This book was great ,very touching made me cry :(. I loved it and would definately recommend it to anyone !
I did not think I would enjoy reading books about cutting, but I enjoyed reading both "Cut" and "Willow". The characters in "Willow" grew on me, and the book was hard to put down.
This book was ok. Of course it is a teen book and some teen books have relevance across age groups, this one was not one of those, if you are adult pass it up. It had okay characters, nothing that stuck out and none that were developed to the point that you were inside their heads, which in a book about cutting it would be appropriate and of course the end wraps up in a happy ending little bow.
